Ironman Triathlon. A 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile
bike, 26.2-mile run. One after the other. For the professionals, this is an
athletic event taking a little over eight hours. For the "age groupers", those
ordinary individuals competing for a myriad of personal reasons, the challenge
can last all the way up to the seventeen-hour cut-off. These individuals range
in age from 18 to well into their 80's, and each has their own goal, their own
purpose in completing this grueling event. For some, it starts as a way to lose
weight. Others are overcoming a substance addiction. There are those who just
like the challenge.

For the age grouper this is a competition
not against one another as much as it is against oneself and one's own fears
and (perceived) limitations. The sport requires 20, 30, even 40 hours of training
per week, and demands a dedication and perseverance that would conquer most
individuals. Yet these athletes persist, pushing themselves harder, farther,
longer in the hopes of crossing that finish line, earning them the title "Ironman."

When these champions cross the finish line
the casual observer will see the exhaustion, the dehydration, the collapse,
the retching, the muscle cramping, the tears, the snot and the spit. The observer
will acknowledge the fitness of each participant, but not necessarily the beauty
of these individuals.

The triathlete's quest is a very personal
one; often a very selfish one, and often a lonely one. But each of these people
is striving for a perfection, a beauty that is often lost on the average person.
Not just corporeal beauty, although that is often a result. The beauty obtained
by these individuals comes from a focus, a determination, a dedication to overcoming
not only the limits imposed by their bodies, but surpassing the fears, self-doubts,
and demons that the mind conjures up when the body is pushed to its physical
limit. While each participant has his or her own reasons for pursuing this most
demanding sport; many are driven to see just how much more they can get out
of a body for which we are granted only temporary use.

The beauty of the triathlete lies not just
in their physique, but in their character.